KYMA-DT

KYMA-DT

Yuma, Arizona/El Centro, California
Branding	News 11
Slogan	Where News Comes First
Channels	Digital: 11 (VHF)
Affiliations	NBC This TV (DT2)
Owner	Intermountain West Communications Company (sale to Blackhawk Broadcasting pending) (Yuma Broadcasting Company)
First air date	January 22, 1988
Call letters' meaning	YuMA
Former callsigns	KCAA (1982-1987) KYMA (1987-2009)
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 11 (VHF, 1988-2009) Digital: 41 (UHF, 2007-2009)
Former affiliations	ABC (1988) LATV (DT2, 2007-2009)
Transmitter power	2.1 kW
Height	493 m
Facility ID	74449
Transmitter coordinates	33°3′10.3″N 114°49′43.5″W / 33.052861°N 114.828750°W / 33.052861; -114.828750
Website	www.kyma.com

KYMA-DT ("News 11") is an NBC-affiliated television station in Yuma, Arizona/El Centro, California, USA, broadcasting locally in digital on VHF channel 11. KYMA can be received over the air in Blythe, California in the Palo Verde Valley, and in the southeastern end of the Coachella Valley, and it transmits a clear signal to viewers in Mexicali, Mexico. KYMA also broadcasts This TV programming on digital subchannel 11.2.

Digital television

The station's digital signal is multiplexed. In May 2007, KYMA added LATV on digital subchannel 11.2. The affiliation lasted until late 2009, when KYMA replaced it with This TV.

Analog-to-digital conversion

On April 3, 1997, the FCC assigned UHF channel 41 as the digital companion channel for KYMA, and on May 25, 2000, granted a construction permit. KYMA applied for Special Temporary Authorization (STA) for reduced-power operations in order to get a digital signal on the air quickly. The STA was granted on June 7, 2002 and the station built temporary digital facilities, to eventually be replaced by full-power operations. In 2005, KYMA elected and was approved for channel 11 as its permanent digital channel, meaning its license for channel 41 would be returned to the FCC after the analog shut-off, at the time scheduled for February 17, 2009.

Since operations on channel 41 would be temporary, KYMA requested to specify its low-power operation as its final pre-transition DTV facilities. The request was approved and the station was granted a license for its digital channel on September 20, 2006. KYMA was granted a construction permit for its post-transition operations on channel 11 on August 19, 2008. These facilities became operational on June 12, 2009, the new date for the DTV transition.

History

Channel 11 had been home to Yuma's first television station, KIVA, which operated from 1953 until 1970, when it went off the air. The allocation lay vacant for ten years, but by 1980, applications had been submitted to revive channel 11 in Yuma, and on September 29, 1982, the FCC awarded an original construction permit to Elizabeth Overmyer with call letters KCAA. The station's early history was eventful, as Overmyer was forced to transfer control of the station to Cadmus, Inc. in November 1984.

Cadmus then sold the station to Yuma Television Associates (later Manning Telecasting, then Yuma Broadcasting Company) in January 1986. The station changed its call letters to KYMA on July 27, 1987, reviving long-dormant call letters of a Yuma radio station, and began broadcasting in January 1988 as an ABC affiliate, later becoming an NBC affiliate in a swap with then-KYEL, which would later become KSWT. KYMA was granted its initial license on April 29, 1988. The station changed hands again on June 8, 1989, when Yuma Broadcasting was sold to Sunbelt Communications Company, and finally, KYMA and its parent company, were sold to James Rogers on May 21, 1996.

In May 2013, Intermountain West Communications Company (the former Sunbelt Communications) reached a deal to sell the station to Blackhawk Broadcasting, a company that shares ownership with the Northwest Broadcasting group.^[1] In July, Blackhawk announced that they also in the process of acquiring competing station, KSWT from Pappas Telecasting, which would require a failing station waiver.^[2] The FCC approved the KYMA transaction on August 12,^[3] while the KSWT transaction was approved on December 23.^[4][5]

Programming

Being an NBC affiliate, KYMA's schedule is dominated by network and syndicated programming, including children's programming from qubo on Saturday mornings. Syndicated programming featured on KYMA includes: Dr. Phil, The Insider, Jeopardy!, Inside Edition, Wheel of Fortune and Grey's Anatomy'; in addition, unlike most stations that carry the show, KYMA airs Live! with Kelly and Michael at 11 a.m., instead of the program's standard 9 a.m. timeslot.

News operation

The station produces four daily newscasts on weekdays at 6 a.m., 5, 6 and 10 p.m., and two daily newscasts on the weekends at 5 and 10 p.m. Mountain Time. Unlike most NBC affiliates in the Mountain time zone, it does not carry a full two-hour weekday morning newscast or a midday newscast. Until December 2008, it operated a news bureau in El Centro to provide additional coverage of the Imperial Valley.

News/station presentation

Newscast titles

• Valley News (1960s)
• KYMA Eyewitness News 11 (1988–1990)
• KYMA First News (1990–1996)
• NewsCenter 11 (1996–1999)
• NBC NewsChannel 11 (1999–2009)
• News 11 (2009–present)

Station slogans

• "Channel 11, The Ones To Watch!" (1988–1990)
• "KYMA, Yuma/El Centro's Station" (1991–1998)
• "Where News Comes First" (1999–present)

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On-air staff

Current on-air staff^[6]

Anchors

• Jon Archuleta - managing editor; weeknights at 5, 6 p.m.
• Rob Fram - chief weather anchor; weeknights at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.; also sports anchor weeknights at 6 and 10 p.m.
• Joey Norton - weekday morning meteorologist "News 11 Sunrise" (6-7 a.m.)
• Christi Rodriguez - weeknights at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.
• Michael Colaianni - weeknights 10 p.m.

Reporters

• Milrose Basco - Imperial Valley multimedia journalist
• Raquel Estupinan - multimedia journalist
• Aisha Morales - weekend anchor; weeknight multimedia journalist
• Ernesto Romero - News Director
• Nico Santos - multimedia journalist

Former on-air staff

(In alphabetical order)

Notes

External links

• Official KYMA Website
• KYMA-DT2 This TV
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KYMA
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KYMA-TV
• Program Information for KYMA at TitanTV.com